Glass channel run



Dec. 15, 1959 H. G. HENCKEN GLASS CHANNEL RUN Filed Nay 21,l 1957 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR. HAROLD G. HENCKEN ATTORNEYS Dec. 15, 1959 H. G. HENcKEN GLASS CHANNEL RUN 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Fig. 6

Filed May 21, 1957 Fig. 5

rf. w

Fig. 7

RELATNE coMPREssioN ini-:FORMATION I IIO FELT uNvoLR* lol 2o 3o 4o 5o so 1o eo- 9o loo DEFORMATION, (.ooi") INVENTOR; HAROLD G. HENCKEN ff/www.

ATTORNEYS GLASS CHANNEL RUN Harold G. Hencken, Greenwich, Conn., assignor to Amer'- ican Felt Company, Glenville, Conn., a corporation of Massachusetts Application May 21, 1957, serial No. $150,658` I 1 claim. (ci. 29e-44.5)

This invention comprises a new land improved lining for glass channel runs of the type commonly employed for slidably retaining a glass plate in the door or body of an automobile.

Heretofore strips of felt have been attached to the inner surface of a U-shaped channel and this construction has not been entirely satisfactory because the felt strips tend to swell in contact with water and variations in thickness of the felt cause variations in the frictional resistance to movement of the glass plate. Moreover, when square cut edges of the felt strips are exposed they interfere with rapid assembly of the glass components. Felt strips also tend to buckle when the channel is bent or curved, and when attached by a sewed seam the thread is exposed to wearing surfaces. In glass runs heretofore known it has proved impractical to use felt of dense consistency because of increased frictional resistance incident to its use.

The improved lining of the present invention eliminates the above objections and makes use of the bending resilience of wool felt or other non-woven or woven fabric or compsition rather than the compression resistance of the material. To this end the lining comprises sheet felt located at opposite sides of the channel in in volute loop formation with the side members of the loops resiliently spaced apart but compressible toward each other. Thus the resilient compressibility of the felt is utilized to maintain effective sealing contact with the glass plate with a substantially uniform degree of frictional engagement under all weather conditions encountered. Thus a denser fabric may be used which has greater dimensional stability and may be manufactured to closer tolerances. Resistance to movement of the glass plate is reduced due to lessening of contact pressure between the glass and the fabric. A rounded or tapered outer edge is provided for automatic centering of the glass plate during assembly. If stitching is employed to join the inner folds of the fabric it is not visibleand not exposed to wear. The use of thinner fabric with spaces resiliently maintained between the folds thereof allows the lining to be applied to a curved channel without buckling. Accordingly, the lining may be smoothly cemented to the inner face of the channel and its cut edge may be conveniently enclosed and concealed within a metallic bead.

These and other features of the invention will be best understood and appreciated from the following description of certain preferred embodiments thereof selected for purposes of illustration and shown in the accompanying drawings in which:

Figs. l-6 are views in cross-section on an enlarged scale through a conventional channel lined in specifically diierent formation, and

Fig. 7 is a chart indicating the comparative compression strain upon solid felt, pile fabric and felt disposed in involute loop formation.

As shown in Fig. 1 the channel itself or the casing 10 of the channel is formed of sheet metal bent into U-shape with an inner facing 11 of fabric or plastic sheet material. Within this isjplaced a molded rubber ller 12 1 which may be .04" or thereabouts in thickness. A sheet and these loops are secured together by a line o f stitchof felt 13 is formed to t withinv the rubber filler and given an involute fold or 2 formation inieach side; that is to say, it is foldedr to present a downwardly opening loop 14 and an overlapping upwardly opening loop 15,

ing 16. The free margins of the felt sheet then extend upwardly concealing the edges of the rubber ller 12 and are engaged along the oppositefwalls of the channel withina cylindrical metallic bead 17 which engages also nthe upper edges of the casing 10 and its inner facing 11.

IIn Fig. 1 is shown the normaluncompressed shape of the involute loop formation from which it will be apparent that the side walls of the loops are resiliently spaced apart. In Fig. 2 a portion of the glass plate is indicated in dot-and-dash lines as received between the involute loop formation of the sheet felt and from this it will be apparent that the loops are somewhat cornpressed or consolidated by the action of the glass. The three side portions of the two loops are arranged in superposed relation and are compressible as a stack on opposite sides of the glass plate. This compression takes place as already explained without substantially increasing the frictional resistance to movement of the glass while in contact with the felt.

In Figs. 3 and 4 are shown a modified construction in which the rubber filler 12 of Figs. 1 and 2 is omitted and sheet felt 13 of considerably greater thickness than that already described is employed. It is, however, fashioned in the same involute or Z loop formation presenting a downwardly opening loop 14 and an overlapping upwardly opening loop 15. In Fig. 4 the compressive action of the glass plate upon the involutions of the felt formation is indicated. In both examples the felt is formed from a continuous sheet that extends without interruption across the bottom of the channel. In a channel of commercial size such as that shown in Figs. l and 2, a strip of felt 2.5" wide and .036" in thickness may be used to advantage.

In the channels of Figs. 3 and 4 the rubber filler is omitted and the felt increased to about 1%;4" in thickness. The sheet felt as shown in these figures has an involute fold at each side of the channel including the downwardly opening loop 14' and the overlapping upwardly opening loop 15', the side portions of which are resiliently spaced apart but compressible when the glass is inserted between them.

Figs. 5 and 6 suggest further modifications of the invention in which separate sheets or strips of felt are employed at oppoiste sides of the channel. In the left side of Fig. 5 the felt strip 19 is given an involute fold having a downwardly opening loop 20 enclosed in an upwardly opening loop 21. A rubber filler 12 is shown in this side of the channel. In the right side of Fig. 5 the rubber filler is omitted and the thickness of the felt somewhat increased.

In Fig. 6 the rubber filler 12 is shown and the felt strips 22 are folded to present a single upwardly opening loop 23, the sides thereof being resiliently spaced in initial condition but arranged to be compressed by the action of the glass plate. In both of these modifications a block or strip is secured to the bottom of the channel.

In each of the illustrated embodiments of the invention the marginal portions of the felt sheet or strips are extended outwardly at an inclination and in divergent relation beyond the side walls of the channel thereby faciltating the centering of a glass plate therein.

F-ig. 7 indicates graphically the action of solid felt strip, pile fabric and felt presenting involute folds. The deformation of these materials is plotted in the abscissa axis lPatented Dec. 15, 1959` formation ofthe involute folded 'felt-requires-vry' sub#V stantially less pressure'l than-fthesolid felt stripr'orrto'fbeY equivalentto pile fabricas an initial deformation: of .0602 been,` reached. i

Havingfthus disclosed my invention` describedrin'. detailyillustrative embodiments thereof,- I claim as new` and d esire to secure by Letters Patent:

In a glass run window channel, a lininglccmprising a single' continuous Vsheet of felt folded in izformationfat ech-side offthe channel',zpresenting rounded voutwardlyv directed entering.Y edges and extending :withoutinterrup tion across' thebottomrofmhechannel; thelinnrfolds of'Y wenz-formacion-;beingaeeefed :together wtfhmmen outer folds, and the outer folds beingreadily conformable until consolidation with the inner folds.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,421,927 Faurot July 4, 1922 1,572,427 Fuller Feb. 9, 1926 1,748,216 Feb. 25, 1930 2,102,935 Dec. 21, 1937 2,155,559 Lefevre Apr. 25, 1939 2,336,835 Balfe Dec.4 4, 1943 2,363,785 Gold ..2 Nov. 28, 1944 2,399,204 Cameron. Apr.'30, 1946 FOREIGN PATENTS 230,234 Great Britain Mar. 12, 1925 

